Syracuse, N.Y. — Syracuse has never played seven consecutive ranked opponents in the regular season like it is poised to this season. Head coach John Desko is hopeful it doesn't happen again.

Desko and the Orange are known for their ambitious scheduling, but even the SU head coach admits this season's slate is a little more challenging than he would have liked.

After opening the season with an easy win over Siena, the Orange embarked on a gauntlet of games that will likely include seven straight ranked opponents. The stretch began with SU's second game against Albany on Feb. 16 and finishes with Notre Dame on March 29, more than a month without a breather.

"It's definitely the toughest schedule we've ever had," Desko said. "If you can survive it, you're going to be a better team because of it."

That, of course, is the tricky part. The Orange must beat at least one ranked opponent with a highly-ranked faceoff specialist just to have a chance at reaching .500.

This week's opportunity comes Saturday at No. 2/3 Johns Hopkins (5-0), the fourth consecutive ranked foe for the No. 10/10 Orange (3-2). It begins what could be a make-or-break three-game stretch for Syracuse.

"It's a rivalry game," junior Nicky Galasso said. "And it's a big game for us because it can determine some things."

That's an unusual place, and an unusually early key period, for a program that was once a favorite to reach the Final Four.

It's the result of Desko's traditionally ambitious schedule, Syracuse's need to maintain some historical rivalries and an ACC in transition that might be the strongest it will ever be.

With the Orange coming off last year's national championship appearance, Desko believed it was a challenge Syracuse was prepared for. It still could be, even if SU's record isn't quite as pristine as usual.

Conference schedules dictated that Syracuse play at least five ranked opponents, and Desko wanted to maintain Syracuse's tradition with regional rival Cornell and historic rival John Hopkins.

Add in an Albany team that is stronger than usual and an up-and-coming group from St. John's, and it has added up to the most ambitious schedule the Orange has ever embarked on.

"We knew certain things were going to happen with Maryland going forward," Desko said. "We'll plug in someone probably a little different caliber than the Terps moving forward. We dropped enough traditional opponents to begin with, so dropping a team like Hopkins would have been very hard for us."

For the moment, Desko sounds content with making the Blue Jays the team's primary out-of-area rival.

"It's been such a traditional game for us," Desko said. "It helps with strength of schedule. Pretty difficult to drop that one. We'll evaluate, but it's a game we all look forward to. One year it's in Baltimore and it's a great crowd, the next year we come to Syracuse, so it's a game we're going to try to hold on to."

In revenue sports, the goal for coaches is generally to safely qualify for the postseason while testing their team enough in the process. ESPN analyst Paul Carcaterra, a former Syracuse player, said the attitude is a little different in lacrosse, where facing top programs is an expectation.

"You might take some lumps in any given year but you don't change your philosophy for one season," Carcaterra said. "That said, something has to give for Syracuse. You're talking six of the top teams in college lacrosse in one conference and Albany, Cornell and Hopkins on top of that."

He remains a believer that Syracuse can be one of those top teams this season due to its overall talent and offensive scheme.

"They really are playing incredible lacrosse," Carcaterra said. "They have guys shooting 50, 60 percent. Anything over 30 is good. If they get the ball, they're very difficult to stop."

Syracuse remains capable, just as gifted as it was when it began the year as a Final Four favorite, but it's also not hard to envision the Orange losing all their ACC games. Every remaining conference opponent is ranked and has a faceoff specialist among the country's top 16 to match up with SU's weakness. The same goes for Cornell and Johns Hopkins.

Syracuse must find a way to beat at least one of them simply to reach .500, while going the rest of the season without a slip.

As long as the Orange manage that, Carceterra said the schedule could be a blessing.

Desko has noted that losses tend to highlight the team's flaws, allowing them to be corrected early in the year, while Carcaterra believes the Orange needs to beat an elite team at some point for its own confidence.

"They're an incredibly talented team but they're also fragile to some extent," Carcaterra said. "They need a big win to head into the gauntlet with some confidence."

Even from a pragmatic perspective, the schedule might not damage the Orange as long as it reaches .500.

The NCAA Tournament selection committee tends to use RPI and head-to-head results as two of its major barometers, and the Orange owns two wins over ranked opponents already and a strength of schedule that will keep its RPI soaring regardless of its record.

Syracuse players Kevin Rice and Dylan Donahue both said they don't mind risking losses for a competitive game.

"We want to play the best teams," Rice said. "That's what you come to Syracuse for. We could schedule cupcakes, but you don't get any better from it. There's no benefit. We're 3-2 right now, but I think we're a lot better and we have plenty of opportunities to make up for those losses."